HomeMy WebLinkAboutMemo - Mail Packet - 10/18/2022 - Memorandum From Kirk Longstein And Rebecca Everette Re: 1041 Regulations - Project UpdatesPlanning, Development & Transportation Services
Community Development & Neighborhood Services
281 North College Avenue
P.O. Box 580
Fort Collins, CO 80522.0580
970.416.2740
970.224.6134- fax
fcgov.com
DATE: October 13, 2022
TO: Mayor and City Council
THRU: Kelly DiMartino, City Manager
Tyler Marr, Interim Deputy City Manager
Caryn Champine, Director of Planning, Development and Transportation
Paul Sizemore, Community Development and Neighborhood Services Director
FROM: Kirk Longstein, Environmental Planner
Rebecca Everette, Planning Manager
RE: 1041 Regulations – Project Updates
Bottom Line:
This memo provides an update on community engagement and the approach for Council’s first
reading of the proposed 1041 regulations. Based on Council feedback at the June 28, 2022
Work Session and public engagement, staff has revised the draft regulations to refine the
scope, applicability, definitions and review standards for activities of interest.
Given the extensive nature of the revisions from the June 2022 Draft, staff has proposed a
Council Work Session to review the updated draft and option, and to seek further feedback and
guidance in preparation for First Reading.
Proposed Scope of Regulations:
As currently proposed, a 1041 permit would be required for projects that are included in one of
the categories below and have adverse impacts. Staff has prepared two versions of the draft
regulations in light of comments received:
Version One includes the types of projects described in the designation ordinance, and would
apply to projects throughout the City (edge to edge and not in specific geographic locations):
1. New arterial highways, interchanges, and collector highways.
2. Expanded arterial highways, or collector highways that would result in either:
a. An increase in road capacity by at least one vehicle lane; or
b. Expansion or modification of an existing interchange or bridge.
3. New wastewater treatment plants.
4. New or extensions to major domestic water and sewage treatment systems.
Version Two includes these projects (as designated previously and noted above) but is limited
to a narrower geographic scope, slightly modified from the scope of the moratorium, as follows:
1. Projects otherwise within the scope of the regulations that either:
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a. Are located on (or cross through) an existing or planned future City natural area
or park, whether developed or undeveloped; or
b. Are located on (or cross through) City building sites or other non-right-of-way
property owned by the City, whether developed or undeveloped.
For Council discussion, this version also includes within its scope projects that:
c. Are located within an existing or potential future buffer zone of a natural habitat
or feature, as defined in the Land Use Code; or
d. Have potential to adversely impact historic resources.
Recent Work and Next Steps:
Based on Council’s discussion at the June 28 Work Session and with continued public
engagement (see public engagement summary below) staff has updated the 1041
regulations to incorporate additional feedback since the draft regulations were first
released in June 2022.
Staff recognizes that Councilmembers still have questions or concerns about the current
scope of the regulations and the options presented, and the project would benefit from
an additional work session prior to first reading. A work session has been scheduled for
November 8. Depending on Council direction, staff could bring an Ordinance to Council
as soon as December 6. The following options represent two timeline scenarios that may
be appropriate based on Council direction:
Timing Options for Council Consideration
Option 1
(compressed
timeline)
Work Session – November 8
First Reading – December 6
Second Reading – December 20
Moratorium expires December 31
Option 2
(extended
timeline)
Work Session – November 8
Ordinance extending length of moratorium for 2-3 months – November 15
First Reading – December 20
Second Reading – January 17 or February 7
Following first reading, staff is prepared to make modifications to the Ordinance based
on Council’s direction on first reading, for as needed. If first reading of the Ordinance is
delayed as recommended, or if, on first reading, significant changes to the draft
regulations warrant additional public engagement or legal review, staff is prepared to
present to Council an Ordinance to extend the length of the moratorium by 2-3 months.
Due to the time and effort required to revise the draft code, recommendations from the
Planning & Zoning Commission, Land Conservation Stewardship Board, Natural
Resources Advisory Board, Water Commission, and Transportation Board will not be
available until late November. If Council desires additional time for board and
commission recommendations prior to first reading, then the date of that hearing should
be delayed, and the moratorium should be extended. In addition, Council may wish to
provide more time for stakeholders to review and comment on the new drafts of the
regulations, given that the prior public draft was presented much earlier in June as only a
preliminary draft for discussion.
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PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT SUMMARY
Over the last ten months, staff sought input from community partners on 1041 regulations for
water and highway projects that are (1) contextually appropriate to Fort Collins, (2) provide
predictability for developers and decision makers, and (3) provide adequate guidance for staff
review and implementation of permits.
Throughout the time since the release of the initial draft code in June to the present, in addition
to organized outreach events, staff has met or spoken by phone at length with individual
stakeholders, both in support of and opposed to the regulations, to discuss questions and
feedback in great detail. Staff has listened deeply and worked to find balance among the
perspectives and concerns expressed by various individuals, organizations, utility providers,
agencies, developers, Boards and Commissions, and Northern Colorado communities.
Significant revisions in the current draft regulations are in direct response to the insights and
information gathered through these conversations.
The following table summarizes feedback from public comments, an anonymized survey, 1:1
discussions and focus group meetings as they relate to various community priorities:
Community Feedback Themes
Housing
Resilience
Value for natural habitat features that increase community wellbeing through
benefits like clean air, landscape aesthetics, and flood control.
Concerns that environmental regulation can impact the supply of housing if they
increase the amount of time necessary to build housing units.
High
Performing
Government
Value for transparency, access to more information and opportunities to address
inequities.
Concerns that additional permitting requirements are redundant, create
uncertainty, project delays, require additional time, and investment in City-
specific mitigation requirements.
Economic
Resilience
Preference for local control of large projects to ensure community-wide benefits
are realized.
Importance of balancing the burdens of bureaucracy and the demands of a fast-
growing community.
City Council:
The current draft of the regulations was structured around the feedback received from City
Council at the June 28 Work Session and subsequent input. The following feedback themes
were shared by Council during the Work Session and addressed by staff.
City Council Feedback How has Staff Addressed Feedback?
Create right guardrails for 1041
applicability.
Staff have clarified ordinance text to align more closely with
the thresholds from the moratorium ordinance, while still
protecting natural habitats and features from adverse
impacts.
Review exemptions to ensure they
don’t result in loopholes.
Concern over the term
“significant” as being arbitrary and
too high of bar.
Staff have removed the term significant and are relying on
the definition of “adverse impact” and full mitigation for permit
issuance.
Support tiered review process as
long as it works.
Staff have removed the administrative review and is keeping
the” Finding of Negligible Adverse Impact” concept so that a
relief valve is provided for smaller projects and City Council is
the sole decision maker on larger projects requiring permits.
Establish time period for pre-
application process.
Maximum time periods have been incorporated into the pre-
application process.
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Focus Groups:
Focus groups played a key role in reviewing Code language and providing specific feedback
that staff have addressed in an updated draft regulations. The focus groups included:
Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) staff
Environmental advocacy group representatives
Economic and Regional representatives (homebuilders, elected officials, Chamber of
Commerce, CSU)
Water and Sanitation Providers
Boards and Commissions representatives
Stakeholder Feedback How has Staff Addressed Feedback?
How does 1041 lead to a better
project outcome and enhance overall
community benefits?
Review criteria include the City's Natural Habitats and
Features Inventory Map, which aligns with the
community’s values to preserve natural resources.
The permit program introduces an
administrative burden that adds time
and cost.
Updated review criteria, articulating the role of
mitigation, and aligning with existing City maps of
natural habitat features intend to provide additional
certainty for agencies planning a multiyear infrastructure
project.
Ambiguous approval process adds
project uncertainty.
Staff have removed “tiered review” so that City Council
is the sole decision maker.
1041 is redundant with
multijurisdictional requirements and
is out of sync with federal funding
opportunities.
The focus of the scope and review criteria seeks to
address gaps in other jurisdictional procedures. For
example, the city can ensure protection and mitigation of
resources that may not be protected by County, State or
Federal regulations.
Regs should allow more flexibility
and exemptions
Updates to the City’s definition of development intend to
create certainty and narrow the scope of projects
covered under the 1041 regulations.
1041 regs should be applied to
private development and not public
agencies.
Fort Collins Utilities is a public agency leading by
example and partnering with City Planning staff to
ensure regulations align with the service delivery
commitments of Utilities and the values of the
community.
Uncertainty around the use of
Intergovernmental Agreements in
lieu of permitting.
The current draft removes this provision.
Requirements for water conservation
and other programs in the system of
an applicant water provider go
beyond the City’s appropriate reach.
The current draft removes requirements related to the
applicant’s system that are not physically within the
scope of the regulations.
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Public Participation Activities:
Throughout 2022, the general public was invited to participate and engage through online
activities, public events and one-on-one meetings with City staff. Throughout the engagement
process key questions included:
Parameters, Exemptions, and Thresholds
o How do staff determine what project categories are regulated?
o How does the program provide a clear review process?
Review Criteria
o What are the parameters of an adverse impact?
Application requirements
o What is needed to determine an application complete?
Application review process
o Who is the decision maker
o What is the appeals process?
Boards and
Commissions Dates
Water Board 9/16/2021 8/18/2022 11/17/2022
Transportation Board 11/16/2022
Planning and Zoning
Commission 8/13/2021 2/11/2022 6/10/2022 10/14/2022 11/17/2022
Land Conservation and
Stewardship Board 9/8/2021 2/9/2022 6/8/2022 10/12/2022
Chamber of Commerce 9/17/2021 6/24/2022 10/28/2022
Natural Resources
Advisory Board 9/16/2021 2/16/2022 6/15/2022 10/19/2022
Economic Advisory
Board 10/19/2022
Focus Group meetings Dates
Water and Sanitation providers 2/3/2022 8/1/2022 8/18/2022
Environmental 2/4/2022 8/2/2022 8/4/2022
Economic/Municipal 2/3/2022 8/2/2022
Colorado Department of
Transportation 1/28/2022 8/5/2022
Boards and Commission liaisons 2/8/2022 8/1/2022 8/4/2022
Larimer County 1/23/2022 2/8/2022
Public Participation Dates
Open House/Public Forum 2/23/2022
(AM & PM) 8/30/2022 9/1/2022
Online Survey 2/1/2022 8/30/2022
Online engagement –
OurCity; fcgov.com Ongoing
Press Release 9/2021 2/2022 8/2022
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Stakeholder List
The following list details the interested parties that have been directly engaged by staff at
several times during the process. Outreach and engagement has included the activities
described above, as well as frequent email updates, newsletter communications, and individual
meetings.
Air Quality Advisory Board Larimer County Planning Staff
American Whitewater League of Woman Voters
Boxelder Sanitation Natural Resources Advisory Board
Chamber of Commerce North Front Range Water Quality
City of Greeley North Weld County Water District
City of Windsor Northern Engineering
Colorado State University Northern Water
Colorado State University Research
Foundation (CSURF)Planning and Zoning Commission
CSU Graduate Student Save the Poudre
Ditesco Sierra Club
East Larimer County Water District (ELCO) South Fort Collins Sanitation District
Fort Collins-Loveland Water District (FCLWD) SpacePreservation.org
Fort Collins Sustainability Group TB Development Group
Fort Collins Utilities Transportation Board
Hartford Homes Trout Raley Law
Land Conservation and Stewardship Board White Bear Ankele Law
Larimer Alliance
cc: Carrie Daggett, City Attorney
Brad Yatabe, Assistant City Attorney